Washington State’s government agencies and local jurisdictions are encouraged, though not required, to use the Department of Enterprise Services contracts #03514 for on-site interpreting, #05614 for telephone interpreting, and #08114 for sign language interpreting.

Most Washington State courts, which are funded by counties and cities, contract directly with interpreters. Some courts use sophisticated online scheduling software developed either in-house or leased. Pursuant to RCW 2.43.040(5), the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) reimburses participating courts (~20%) up to 50% of their interpreter expense.

For workers compensation claims and crime victims, Labor and Industries (L&I) pays interpreters, who are requested by L&I providers, directly or through an intermediary (language services company).

For Medicaid eligible patients, states have the option of claiming Medicaid and/or CHIP reimbursement for the cost of interpreting services, either as an administrative expense (MAC) or optional covered service. Currently, 15 states take advantage of these federal matching funds: Connecticut, District of Columbia, Iowa, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, Texas (only sign language interpreters), Utah, Vermont, Washington, and Wyoming. In Washington State, the federal government reimburses interpreting expenses at 50% for adults and 75% for children.

LET HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS KNOW OF THIS HCA PROGRAM FOR MEDICAID PATIENTS! You can download, print and leave with them the one-pager titled "Interpreter Services for Medicaid Patients".